Blocking a Gene May Help Prevent Type 2

People who are overweight or elderly are at increased risk for type 2 diabetes, but many people who carry extra weight or reach an advanced age never develop the disease. Scientists discovered a gene that may help explain why some people are protected from type 2. Genetic tests from 150,000 people revealed that those who carried mutations that destroyed the function of an insulin-storage gene called SLC30A8 had a 65 percent lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes. The researchers don’t know how the mutations helped keep people healthy, but they say that creating new drugs to block SLC30A8 could benefit people with type 2 diabetes. Source:Nature Genetics, published online March 2, 2014